Boil, then simmer

Lunch curries follow the same rhythm. Tokaru (boiling): bring the curry to the boil on a high flame, then lower it to medium for most of the cooking. Visamaru (simmering): when the dish is nearly done, turn the heat right down, stand the pot on a tawa and cover it with a rekabi (lid). The tawa spreads the heat so nothing catches. In the days of coal cooking, embers went on the lid as well, so the heat came from above and below.